


Officers, Hedgehogs, and Aliens; Oh My!

by tharkflark1



Category: Sonic the Hedgehog (2020), Sonic the Hedgehog - All Media Types
Genre: Fluff, Gen, So here we are, also shadow whipple is my son and you can pry him from my cold dead hands, found family is my weakness, hey i can do that, i saw Solar's art and the shadow and wade fics i went, shadow whipple - Freeform, sonic wachowski - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-20
Updated: 2020-07-20
Packaged: 2021-03-04 23:15:41
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,604
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25394470
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tharkflark1/pseuds/tharkflark1
Summary: Shadow and Sonic's first meeting.(Inspired by Solar-Sock's art of it on Tumblr!)
Relationships: Shadow the Hedgehog & Sonic the Hedgehog, Shadow the Hedgehog & Wade Whipple, Sonic the Hedgehog & Tom Wachowski, Tom Wachowski & Wade Whipple
Comments: 12
Kudos: 259





	Officers, Hedgehogs, and Aliens; Oh My!

**Author's Note:**

  * For [stagemanager](https://archiveofourown.org/users/stagemanager/gifts), [SolarSocks](https://archiveofourown.org/users/SolarSocks/gifts).



Shadow’s legs hang off from the office chair, swinging idly. 

The dark hedgehog turns to the sound of a tired yawn next to him. Wade Whipple leans against the desk they both currently sit at, gaze focused on the front door of the station. 

He’s not entirely sure how long they’ve been sitting here. Waiting. But the clock on the wall says it has been about fifteen minutes: not that long but long enough to notice.

The hedgehog had shown up at the station looking for food one night, accidentally encountering the deputy on his late-shift. It still confused Shadow on why Wade had taken him in in the first place. It wasn’t like they had known each other before nor did Wade benefit from housing him. Shadow looks back down at the socks that now adorn his feet: comfortable but providing little support. Even so, they’re still much more comfortable than just bare paws on asphalt and concrete. 

After making sure his new guest was happy and well-fed, Wade mentioned his friend Tom knew more about the whole “picking up strays” thing. Apparently, Tom normally took the late-shift. But that night, he was on a well-needed vacation—whatever that meant. Once the sheriff returned, he would decide what to do with Shadow. Whether it be a good or bad thing Shadow did not know, but Wade’s inability to lie to save his life made the hedgehog a bit less nervous about the whole thing.

The clock ticks thirty. 

“I know Tom said they may be a while because they were unpacking, but this is late even for him. Especially Sonic.”

And then there was this other person: Sonic. Besides Tom, this “Sonic” was the most frequently mentioned name. All Shadow knew about the person was that every time he inquired about him, Wade would just fumble and say “he’s like you.”

“ _Like me?_ _Impossible. I was uniquely created. There’s no other creature like me._ ” Shadow thinks, grip tightening on his knees. “ _But..._ ”

The hedgehog’s ears twitch at the sound of a ringing bell; the front door swings open.

Wade jumps to stand, startling Shadow and sending him hiding under the desk at the possible threat. Nearly tripping on his way to greet the person at the entrance, Wade clasps hands with someone. “Tom! I’m really sorry to call you off of your vacation early—”

Tom laughs. “No, it’s alright. I think I had enough downtime, anyway. Besides, Sonic was gettin’ kinda homesick, I think.” Shadow peeks over the desk just enough to get a good look at the newcomer. He’s about the same height as Wade but leaner with a more confident air to him.

A brand new voice, much younger, makes an offended sound; Shadow cannot see the person from his position behind the desk. “Hey! I was not! I just,” he grumbles something incomprehensible. “I just wanted to see what this surprise Wade was talking about!” 

“Sure, kid.” There’s a ruffling sound, followed by a startled “ _hey!_ ”. “But I will admit, this ‘surprise’ has me a bit anxious. Normally your surprises involve something our budget doesn’t have any way of paying for.”

Wade interjects. “First of all: we don’t talk about the thumbtack incident anymore. Second: it’s not something bad. In fact, I think Sonic might enjoy it the most.”

“Really?!” The younger voice says excitedly. “Well? Lemme see it! Lemme, lemme, lemme!”

“A-Alright, give me one sec…” Footsteps approach Shadow’s spot behind the desk, and he ducks back behind. “He’s a bit nervous so…” The deputy misses the look exchanged between the Wachowskis. “ _He?_ ” They mouth to one another.

The dark hedgehog tenses before seeing Wade’s familiar face peer around the desk. Shadow gives him a look, hesitant. “Come on. Promise they won’t bite.” He holds out a hand. The hedgehog suddenly feels a weird dip-feeling in his chest, but he ignores it. Shaking himself a bit and doing a quick inhale and exhale, Shadow accepts the man’s hand and is slowly pulled out into the open.

“Sonic, Tom,” Wade gives a gentle push to the alien. “This is Shadow.”

Shadow has exactly one second to process a dramatic gasp before something _bright blue_ suddenly appears an inch from his face. 

“ _OH MY GOSH YOU’RE A HEDGEHOG LIKE ME!” —_ It appears to his left, moving too fast to track by eyesight alone. _—_ “ _Where did you come from? How old are you? Are you from space too? I’m from space._ ” _—_ Now it’s at his right. _—_ “ _I’ve lived here most of my life though. My name is Sonic! I’m_ super _fast! Are you fast?_ ” _—_ From behind. _—_ “ _Are you named after your powers? You’re all black but you have stripes too! I’ve_ never _seen that before! What are the stripes for?_ ” _—_ From below. _—_ “ _Where are your gloves and shoes? Do you need shoes? My cousin gave me mine!_ ” And then it stops in front of him once more. “ _How long have you been here? How did you find Wade? You’re a little skinny, are you hungry? You would love chili dogs! They’re my favorite_ —”

The blue speedy thing is abruptly caught by skilled hands. “Alright that's enough out of you. Can’t have you scaring the new guy _too_ badly.” 

With its movements paused, Shadow steadies himself and finally gets a good look at his “attacker”.

The hedgehog remembers his earlier comment on Wade’s terrible lying skills. Vibrating in place in Tom’s arms was, indeed, someone that looked like him, albeit not exactly. For one, this person was _blue_ , not black and red like himself. He also wore red running shoes with white straps and white gloves on both paws. Green eyes scan him in barely restrained interest and excitement, tail wagging at insane speeds.

Tom squats down to Shadow’s level, still holding his clone in his grip. “Well, I’ll be damned.“ He then looks to Wade. “This is… quite the surprise. Where did you find him?”

“He kinda, waltzed right in a couple days ago. Shadow’s been staying at my house for a while, ‘cuz, well,” the deputy rubs the back of his neck. “I didn’t know what else to do with him.” 

_You could have shooed me away. You could have killed me with that gun in your holder. But, you didn’t_. Shadow thinks, now understanding why Wade had not done those things. He’s already met something like this. Like him.

“Okay, okay I’m calm now, _please_ can I be let out?” The blue lookalike wriggles in Tom’s hold. The man raises an eyebrow.

“Sonic Wachowski saying ‘please’? Truly the world is ending.”

Sonic sticks his tongue out. “Rude. I can be polite when I want to.” The alien is placed back on the ground, smoothing his quills down. “Maddie says I’m the nicest kid in town.”

Tom snorts. “Yeah, because she spoils you rotten, ya rascal.” He grabs Sonic once more, giving him a hard noogie. The hedgehog laughs, squirming in an attempt to escape. 

Shadow eyes the two, the banter returning that weird dip in his chest. He’s not exactly sure how to describe the feeling, but it lightens a bit when Wade kneels to Shadow’s side.

“So,” Wade begins, catching the Wachowskis’ attention. “What do we do?” Shadow stiffens.

Tom ponders for a moment. “Well, we can’t just _leave_ him. Not really the Green Hills way.”

“OOH, _OOH_!” Sonic jumps out of Tom’s grip. “Can we stay with us??? Please!” Sonic zips to Shadow’s side. “I’ve never met another hedgehog like me! I want to talk to him more! And it’ll be fun to have, uh…” The speedster trails off, looking questionly at his double. 

“...Shadow.” The dark hedgehog says.

“Yeah! Thanks. Anyway, it’ll be fun to have Shadow around! _Pretty_ please!” 

Tom hums, a strange look in his eye as he looks between the hedgehogs. Was it pity? Or something else...? “I dunno, Sonic. The only other place Shadow could sleep would be your room, and I think he’d prefer to sleep alone.” The sheriff turns to the deputy. “What do you think, Wade?”

Whipple looks a little taken back. “W-Well, I don’t _mind_ him staying at my house. It’s, well, it’s nice to show someone my excellent cooking skills from time to time. And there’s extra room.”

“What excellent cooking skills?”

“Hey, I can cook up a mean mac’ and cheese.”

Abruptly, everyone’s eyes are on Shadow; he immediately feels much smaller than before under their combined gazes. “What do you think, Shadow? Would you want to stay at Wade’s for a bit?”

 _I’d love to_ , is the hedgehog’s first thought. But, that’d be rude. These people, they’ve been so just, _accepting_ of Shadow’s presence. After being chased out of every store and house he’s accidentally walked into, the feeling of _welcomeness_ is so _alien_ to him. And having excess to more than just garbage and stolen food to eat was more than a plus in his book. Shadow swallows the emotion in his throat. 

“That’d… be acceptable.”

Sonic pumps a fist in the air. “Yes! Now, I wanna pick out some stuff for him! I think I have some extra gloves lying around—!” The hedgehog abruptly takes Shadow’s hand, shaking it harshly. “It’s been AWESOME meeting you! Now stay here! I gotta grab some stuff!” And with that, Sonic zooms out the door.

Tom, after a brief state of shock, follows suit. “Hey! Sonic! Wait! Sorry about that—” And like that, he’s gone as well.

Shadow and Wade stand there for a moment, blinking at the front door. Wade gives him an apologetic look. “Uh, you don’t have super speed too, right?”

The alien just shrugs.

**Author's Note:**

> Big thanks to @stagemanager for being an AWESOME PERSON and proof-reading this for me last minute. 
> 
> Also, Solar-Socks, I love u and ur art ;-;


End file.
